I painted my wooden shapes and letters first so that they could dry while I worked on everything else. Roll the diapers so that the decorated part is on the inside and only the white part shows, and use a small rubber band to hold them together.

Cut off small pieces of the star garland and tape it to the top of the dowel (making it look kinda like a fire cracker).﻿

Attach 4 of the rolled diapers to the wooden dowel with a larger rubber band. Make 3 layers of these rings.

For the bottom layer, roll enough diapers to make it 4 rings wide. When you finish each ring, tie a piece of twine to hold the ring together before making the one outside it. For the middle layer, make it 3 rings wide, the top layer 2 rings wide.

Fold the receiving blankets for the middle and top layers horizontally so that they are about 3 inches wide. Since the bottom ring is larger, you will have to fold the blanket for that ring diagonally so that it's large enough to reach all around. Have a friend hold the receiving blanket in the back and tie the ribbon centered over the receiving blanket, knotting it in the back. Follow these steps for each layer.

I attached the teddy bear using a piece of twine that I ran under his shirt and under the diapers to make it not as visible.

Attach your painted letters and shapes using the glue gun onto the ribbon. If you accidently get some on the receiving blankets, it's okay, it's pretty easy to remove once it's dry.

I strung the rest of the star garland around the top of the cake, and placed one of the wooden ships on top, then added some sock booties to make it look not as plain.

The receiving blankets I bought came in a pack of 4, so I cut out a side of the diaper box and covered it with the last blanket (to help support it, and to make it look prettier). The other 3 sides of the diaper box are still perfectly functional so I slid the cake in there to make it easy to transport in the car.

Sunday, August 10, 2014

So I haven't posted anything in awhile, I've been busy getting prepared to go on a year long IA (that's deployment for you civilian types) so I've been really busy with medical and screenings and paperwork and all sorts of other shit to have time to sit down for more than 5 minutes to be crafty. Now since I'm gonna be gone for a year, I obviously had to take some much needed leave to hang out and spoil the monsters crazy before momma leaves, culminating with their combined pre-birthday party since I'll be gone on the actual dates.

The first night we had a cheesey SyFy channel shark movies footie jammie party!

The next day we were supposed to go to the zoo, but we were rained out so we went to Animal Jungle instead.

Wednesday we took James to his first professional baseball game at Harbor Park to cheer on our Norfolk Tides! Afterwards we rode the Tide to MacArthur Center Mall to get ice cream before heading home.

Thursday, Johnny "bought" me a lime tree and some hibiscus plants so we did some gardening.

Friday we baked and decorated the house for their birthday party on Saturday! This party was special not just because it was an early shared party, but because in lieu of presents, Johnny had requested that his friends bring in an item for us to bring to his furry friends at Virginia Beach Animal Care and Adoption Center.

After our guests went home, we brought the cash and donations over to VBAC&AC to drop off. Thank you to all of our friends who supported our silly idea that it's better to give than to receive!!

I'm spending my second half of leave with the boyfriend, so it'll be awhile before I can get back on here with another post. Until next time, ciao!

*UPDATE: My IA was cancelled and I get to spend more time with my little monsters :)

About Me

I'm a divorced Mommy of 2 young boys and 1 dog. My little monsters keep me busy and are my entire world, so whenever they're at Daddy's house I get extremely bored. My blog is dedicated to DIY projects, recipes, life hacks, and whatever little adventures I have when I'm bored. If you have ideas or inspiration for a post, please share with me at thingsidowhen@gmail.com!